8 Best Payment Gateways in the UK in 2024

Ecommerce accounts for over 30% of retail sales in the United Kingdom, and this figure is projected to reach approximately 38.1% by 2025. The revenue of the UK ecommerce industry is also expected to hit USD 144.2 billion in 2025.

If you're considering joining the booming UK ecommerce market, you need to have payment gateways that cater to UK online transactions in place. 

That said, the ideal gateways should accept the UK’s popular online payment methods: credit cards, debit cards, and digital wallets. Leading digital wallets include PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Klarna. Six out of ten ecommerce retailers in the UK also provide a buy now, pay later option.

But with so many options, which payment gateway is best for your online business? This article rounds up the list of the top 8 payment gateways in the UK, comparing their features, fees, and pros & cons, along with tips on how to choose the right one. 

Let’s get into it.

A payment gateway is an interface that collects, encrypts, and authenticates customers’ payment information.

To break it down, when customers enter their payment details – such as card information – to make a purchase, the gateway verifies that data and proceeds to the payment processor and then to the business owner's account upon approval. If there is a discrepancy, the funds stay with the customers. 

It acts as an intermediary that protects both parties during the financial exchange.

Revolut is a Lithuania-licensed neobank regulated within the European Union, with a headquarters in London. In July 2024, it gained authorisation with restrictions to operate as a UK bank. 

It provides various financial products and services designed to help customers spend, save, invest, borrow, and manage their money, all in a single app, catering to personal and business use.

One of Revolut’s business services is the Revolut payment gateway, which allows business owners to create a smooth checkout experience for customers. 

Revolut Top Features

• Accept payments in 25+ currencies into segregated currency accounts
• Accept, settle, and track payments in one dashboard
• Next-day settlement, including holidays and weekends 
• Payment links feature
• API, widgets, and plugins designed for merchants
• Integration with Bigcommerce, Woocommerce, Magento, Opencart, and PrestaShop 
• PCI DSS compliance 

Revolut Accepted Payment Methods

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, UK consumer cards, international cards
• Digital wallets - Apple Pay, Google Pay
• Revolut Pay - Customers can pay directly from their Revolut account or any cards. All approved Revolut Merchant accounts can enjoy this benefit. 
• Tap to Pay on your iPhone. (for POS)
• QR code 

Revolut Key Usage Fees

Please refer to Revolut Card Acceptance Pricing for full details.  

Revolut Pros and Cons

In 2019, Fondy began developing payment solutions and has since expanded its product offerings. The platform processes payments in over 200 countries, supports more than 50 currencies, and provides access to over 300 payment methods.

Catering to both startups and established businesses, one of Fondy’s standout products is its ecommerce payment gateway. This solution offers payment collection across websites, online stores, and mobile apps (Android and iOS).

Fondy’s Top Features

Whether you're a small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) or a large-scale corporation, there are plenty of features to your benefit. These include

• One-click checkout
• Collect payments on social media, in-app, and on website
• Send a payment link via SMS, email, or Messenger, or add it to your invoices 
• Flexible Payout 
• Instant settlement 
• Split payments
• Embedded wallets
• Instant payouts, (like2like currencies) 
• Reports, customer insights and data management
• Access to various business tools
• 24/7/365 contact centre customer service 
• KYC and KYB checks for B2B partners
• PCI DSS compliance

Fondy Accepted Payment Methods

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®
• Digital wallets - Apple Pay, GPay
• iDeal
• Klarna
• Bank Transfer
• Open Banking 
• QR code
• Payment link
• Tap2Phone

Fondy Key Usage Fees

Please refer to Fondy Detailed Pricing for full details.  

Fondy Pros and Cons

Planet connects payments with business-critical software for world-leading retail and hospitality brands. Whether it’s on an online checkout for ecommerce, a booking engine for a hotel, or a secure payment link to sell your goods or services, Planet’s online gateway enables you to accept payments online – from anyone, anywhere.

Unlike typical online gateways, Planet is designed specifically for retail and hospitality businesses, offering global reach, scalability, and availability to thrive in fast-paced environments. This enables merchants to meet the preferences of online shoppers and build trust by safeguarding their card data, all while reducing cart abandonment.

Planet Top Features

• Payment solutions, hospitality and retail software, and global VAT refunds on one platform
• Low-code integration with top ecommerce platforms, such as Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento, Salesforce, Shopware, Prestashop, and more
• Multi-currency (100+ currencies supported)
• Developer-friendly: JSON API & Mobile SDK
• Secure Fields
• For hotels: Pay-by-link without a website
• Retain control: Payments pages embedded without diluting your branding. Shoppers stay on a user-friendly page rather than being redirected to a 3rd party window.
• Generate additional revenue through Dynamic Currency Conversion services
• Languages support: English, German, French, Italian
• Technical help from dedicated account management
• PCI DSS compliance

Planet Accepted Payment Methods

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, Discover, Diners, Union Pay, JCB, Maestro, Paysafecard, Postfinance Card
• Digital wallets – Apple Pay, Google Pay, WeChat Pay
• Local payment methods - Twint, Bancontact
• Alternative payment methods - Klarna, iDeal, AliPay+, SEPA payment, BACS UK. PaybyBank

Planet Usage Fees

Currently, no public information on the fees is available on the website. You must contact the sales page to learn more.

Planet Pros and Cons

Braintree is a payment service provider company headquartered in Chicago. It specialises in delivering mobile and web payment solutions tailored for ecommerce businesses. After being acquired by PayPal, Braintree's name changed from Braintree to "Braintree, a PayPal service" and eventually to "PayPal Braintree."

Currently, PayPal Braintree is an integral part of PayPal’s suite of services, functioning as a comprehensive payment platform that serves clients in over 200 markets worldwide. Its seamless integration with PayPal has improved accessibility, allowing merchants to effortlessly accept PayPal alongside a wide range of other payment methods.

PayPal Braintree Top Features  

• Merchant account and payment gateway
• Accept payments via cards, PayPal, and local methods in over 100 currencies.
• "Pay Later" option for customers.
• Support for recurring billing.
• Customise checkout with a ready-made UI or design your own to match your brand.
• Settlement 1-3 days for a credit card, up to 8 for Amex
• “Smart Retries”, automatically retry declined transactions to boost conversions.
• “FX Optimizer” enables businesses to price items in multiple currencies, while receiving a settlement in their default currency.
• Third-party integrations.
• GraphQL API allows flexible integrations, supporting any programming language without SDK updates.

PayPal Braintree Accepted Payment Methods

• Pay with PayPal 
• Major credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, UnionPay
• Digital wallets - Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, Satispay
• Direct banking - ACH Direct Debit, Multibanco, SafetyPay
• Vouchers - OXXO, Boleto Bancário
• Other methods - Bancontact, BLIK, iDeal, and more

Accepted payment methods may vary by country. For example, if you're in the US, you can pay using Venmo. Other countries may offer different local payment options depending on regional availability.

PayPal Braintree Key Usage Fees

There are no minimums for each transaction. Discounted rates are offered for businesses processing over GBP 50K per month. For further details, please visit this Braintree Pricing page. 

PayPal Braintree also offers customised pricing for enterprises, based on volume and business model. 

PayPal Braintree Pros and Cons

Worldpay, formerly known as "Worldpay from FIS" following its acquisition by the Fortune 500 company FIS, has now returned to its original name after recently separating from FIS to become an independent company. With over 30 years of experience, Worldpay is a global payment provider focused on simplicity and customer-centric solutions.

Worldpay's solutions enable businesses of all sizes to process, accept, and manage payments, whether online, in-store, or via mobile, across 146 countries and 135 currencies.  It has facilitated over 140 million daily transactions for more than a million merchants across 225 markets around the globe. It serves small businesses, enterprises, payment platforms, and marketplaces, supporting industries including crypto, digital content and subscriptions, retail, restaurants, software platforms, travel, airlines, and more.

Worldpay also provides dedicated support for UK territory.

Worldpay Top Features

• Accept 135 currencies
• Online, in-store (point-of-sale card machines), and omnichannel payment
• Payment link
• Next-day business settlement
• Dashboard to manage settlements
• Insights into customer spending patterns 
• Brandable Hosted payment page 
• "Faster refunds" feature (money back in 30 minutes)
• Set up rewards for frequent shoppers
• "Worldpay Ecommerce" design for small business online checkout experience
• 24/7 customer service
• APIs, SDKs, Plugins
• PCI DSS compliance 

Worldpay Accepted Payment Methods

Worldpay accepts standard, local and alternative payment methods, including:

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, Discover, JCB and UnionPay
• Digital wallets - Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, Alipay Hong Kong, WeChat Pay, GrabPay
• Buy Now Pay Later - Affirm, Klarna
• PayPal, PayPal Pay Later
• Virtual terminal 
• Others - SEPA Direct, Bancontact, Blik, iDEAL, Open banking, SafetyPay, Satispay, Touch 'n Go, Trustly, and more

Worldpay Key Usage Fees

Worldpay primarily offers tailored pricing plans depending on business needs. However, you can refer to the standard pricing listed below as a reference.

For more information, please refer to the Worldpay ecommerce sheet and Worldpay Simplicity Payment Gateway page. 

Worldpay Pros and Cons

Opayo, formerly Sage Pay, is a payment solution provider owned by the financial services firm “Elavon,” a subsidiary of US Bancorp. It is in the UK, other European countries, and North America.

Opayo is experienced in serving the airlines, hospitality, restaurants, transport, and retail sectors. They operate in 36 countries, serving over 2 million customers and processing 6.6 billion transactions.

Opayo Top Features

• Support 100+currencies 
• Integrated merchant account and payment gateway
• Accept payment online, over the phone, or in person
• Payment links feature
• Hosted payment page
• Tailored payments process
• Recurring payment feature
• Support multi-currency conversion
• Integration with top ecommerce platforms, including Shopify, Woocommerce, Magento, Salesforce, and more
• Virtual terminal available
• APIs
• 24/7 telephone support
• PCI DSS compliance 

Opayo Accepted Payment Methods

• Cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, Diners, Discover, JCB, UnionPay
• Digital Wallet - Apple Pay, Google Pay
• PayPal
• Pay By Link 

Opayo Key Usage Fees

Opayo Pros and Cons 

Stripe, established in 2010, is a multinational financial services and software-as-a-service (SaaS) company based in both Ireland and the US, and is another well-known choice for businesses. It provides integrated payment solutions for online and in-person transactions, subscription services, marketplaces, and more. 

Beyond payments, Stripe also offers services like invoicing, card issuance, and expense management.

Stripe global offices manage hundreds of billions of dollars every year.

Stripe Top Features

• Accepting payments digitally and face-to-face globally
• Built-in conversion optimisations, with dynamic payment methods and localised messages based on customer location and local currency, plus automatic input field adjustment. No custom logic is needed.
• 100+ payment methods
• One-click checkout with Link
• Payment links, which enable merchants to accept payment even without a website 
• Access over 450 platforms and extensions to streamline and automate nearly all manual tasks
• API and SDK
• PCI DSS compliance 

Stripe Accepted Payment Methods

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, JCB, Discover, Diners, Maestro, UnionPay
• Digital wallet - Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, WeChat Pay
• International cards
• Buy Now Pay Later - Afterpay
• Local payment methods - Bancontact, Giroplay, SEPA payments, and more

Stripe Key Usage Fees

Please refer to the Stripe fees page for full details.

Stripe also offers a customisable pricing package for businesses with high transactions. Fill in your information on the Stripe Sales Page to get in touch with the sales support team. 

 Stripe Pros and Cons 

Adyen is a Dutch payment technology company founded in 2006 and headquartered in Amsterdam. It enables businesses to process payments across various channels, including online, mobile, and physical stores. Adyen also functions as an acquiring bank and holds banking licenses in the UK, EU, and the US In a significant milestone, eBay selected Adyen as its primary partner for payment processing in January 2018.

With a global presence, Adyen operates offices across Europe, Asia-Pacific, North America, the Middle East, Latin America, and Oceania. The company employs over 4,000 people from more than 115 nationalities in 28 offices. In 2023, Adyen processed EUR 970.1 billion in payments.

Adyen Top Features

• Accept, process, and settle payments with the online payment solution built for scale
• Website, in-app, online payment support
• Access to popular local payment methods with one integration
• Donate at checkout
• Subscription payment support
• Location-based payment options
• Vouchers, prepaid, and gift cards supported
• Custom error messages
• APIs

Adyen Accepted Payment Methods

• Credit and debit cards - Visa, Mastercard®, American Express, Diners, Discover, JCB, UnionPay
• Digital wallets - Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, WeChat Pay, Alipay, Alipay+, Amazon Pay
• Buy Now Pay Later - Afterpay & Clearpay, Klarna
• Local payment methods - SEPA Direct Debit, BACS Direct Debit, PayPal, PaySafeCard, Trustly, Open Banking, PaybyBank

Adyen Key Usage Fees 

Adyen Pros and Cons 

To further assist you in choosing the right payment gateway for your business, let’s break down the key factors to consider when evaluating options.

Security

Your customers' financial and personal data requires the highest level of security. A breach not only results in operational interruptions but also brings legal complications, financial challenges, and, most critically, loss of trust.

Here are important security considerations for secure payment: 

• Solid Encryption - Encryption employs algorithms to convert data into a coded format only authorised parties can decode. 
• Authentication - Authentication is the process of confirming the identities of individuals making payments. This can involve methods like passwords, PINs, or advanced biometric solutions.
• Proactive fraud prevention - Real-time transaction monitoring and instant alerts to detect and respond to any suspicious activities.
• Compliance with PCI DSS - Ensure strict compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), a comprehensive standard that governs the secure handling of credit card data from major card brands.

Here are some questions you could ask providers to get an idea of their security measures

• How do you protect my and my customer’s data? 
• How do you monitor and prevent fraud and cyberattacks?
• How do you handle data breaches? What policies and procedures do you have in place?

A Great UX/UI

Ecommerce faces a significant issue of 70% shopping cart abandonment, partly attributed to the complicated checkout process.

That's why it's important for customers to have an easy and user-friendly payment experience with just a few clicks and no distractions.

Likewise, an administrative panel that allows you to easily manage transactions, refunds, reports, and other features matters to you. 

Here are questions you can ask providers to understand their UX/UI:

• Which choices and features are available for modifying the appearance and user experience of the payment page?
• Does the payment page work well on different devices, browsers, and screen sizes? 
• What's included in the admin dashboard?

 Integration Capability 

Another essential factor to consider is how well a payment gateway works with your existing systems, like your website, online store, CRM, and other ecommerce platforms.

Common integration methods include

• API (Application Programming Interface) - A set of protocols that allows software to exchange data with your platform, enabling developers to simplify their programs by handling user requests and delivering results.
• SDK (Software Development Kit) - Think of SDK as a toolbox for developers, comprising code libraries. Developers can use this toolbox to build apps for specific systems, in this case, to customise how the payment gateway works.
• Documentation - Documentation is a guide that explains how to use the payment gateway's tools, like the API and SDK.
• Technical Help - A support team to assist with technical setup, inquiries, or issues.

Here are some questions you could ask providers to understand how well their products can integrate with your system

• Which programming languages, frameworks, and tools do you support for integrating your payment gateway?
• How do you handle updates, upgrades, or changes to your payment gateway or its features?

Pricing Model

The most common payment gateway pricing models in the UK are a subscription plan and a pay-as-you-go plan. Both models include transaction fees or processing fees, charged per transaction.

Subscription plans often have lower transaction fees but require a monthly fee, while pay-as-you-go plans usually have no monthly fees but higher transaction costs.

To make the right choice for your business, consider your sales volume, transaction size, and growth expectations. Subscription plans work well for businesses with high, consistent sales, while pay-as-you-go is better for those with lower or unpredictable sales.

Factor in other fees, such as setup, chargebacks, refunds, international payments, card processing, and add-on services. We recommend requesting a quote and reaching out to customer support for clarification on potential hidden fees, discounts, and eligibility criteria. Examples of questions you could ask are:

• What services are included in the monthly fees?
• Are there setup, cancellation, or early termination fees, and when do they apply?
• How are fees handled for international transactions?
• Do you charge any fees for your value-added service fees, such as fraud prevention, data security, reporting, analytics, or customer support? 
• How will you invoice me for the fees and charges? 

Reliable Support 

It's a reality in business that you will run into problems. 

When it comes to payment processing, expect issues like compatibility problems, operational glitches, disputes, refunds, and unexpected fees.

A reliable payment service provider should offer a support team that can promptly address and resolve those issues. They should also have good availability and flexibility in terms of contact channels, such as phone, email, and live chat.

Here are some questions you could ask providers to assess potential problems and inquire about their support:

• How do you ensure the reliability and performance of your service? 
• What is your uptime guarantee?
• What methods of contact are available? 
• What is your customer support’s average response time?

To sum it up, we've covered the top 8 payment gateways in the UK, including Revolut, Fondy, Planet, PayPal Braintree, Worldpay, Opayo, Stripe, and Adyen.

Apart from considering security, user experience, compatibility, pricing, and customer service, it’s crucial to cater to popular UK payment methods like card payments and digital wallets.

Whether you prioritise integration capability, pricing flexibility, or reliable support, we hope this article helps you find a solution that suits your needs and gets you ready to position your business to thrive in the UK ecommerce market!